spiritofatlantis.com | Duane K. McCullough
Galapagos Field Trip
By Duane McCullough
The images presented in this seastory article were taken during a "field trip" to the Galapagos Islands in late '69 with a polaroid camera. My father was invited to work in Ecuador and, as a student from Miami, I had the opportunity to visit the Galapagos Islands for two weeks with fellow English speaking students during their "summer season" classes. The adventure seemed difficult at times because of the limited accommodations, but looking back now at the experience it was a trip of a lifetime.
We left the port of Guayaquil, Ecuador to the Galapagos Islands aboard an Ecuadorian Naval vessel named "Calicuchima" late in the afternoon and took two days to reach the first island of San Cristobal. The first night out I almost got seasick because I spent the night in the life-raft next to the smokestack and its diesel fumes. It was better than having to endure the smells of a bunk down in the hold with about a dozen sick Ecuadorian army musicians. Waking up to stormy forty-foot seas was kind of fun.
The settlement harbor of Puerto Baquerizo on San Cristobal and a little house nearby is where we spent our first week. I remember sitting on the rocky shore and watching seals body surf in the waves while the clattering shore rocks would make their way back to the sea after every major wave. The numerous iguanas along the rocky shore would "butt heads" while children played along the harbor beach down the coast.
One day we rode an old dump truck up into the nearby mountains to experience the wonders of the highlands. There were cattle roaming between a high valley area while cloud shadows climbed the higher elevations. The jungles of San Cristobal are thick but low in height. Streams flowed from the hillsides and were fun to explore.
A week later the ship stopped at the port of Santa Cruse where we stayed a night at a motel lounge. The Darwin Research Institute had some tortoises in a nearby containment area which was neat to see. Not far from the motel was a great beach where we built a big sand castle over a big wooden stake that was used to tie off anchored boats in the cove. Unfortunately, one student forgot about the stake in the middle of the castle and ran to jump on it to destroy it. Needless to say, he will never to that again.
During the two weeks while visiting the Galapagos Islands, several members of our party became so sunburned that medical attention was needed. Before the trip was over, I had to wear a cardboard nose cover because of a serious sunburn. I guess the sun is very strong near the equator in Ecuador. In the end, our visit to the Galapagos Islands was the best "field trip" I ever experience.
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